Expert Insights From a Brilliant Project Manager

One of the true joys I have in my role is the opportunity to meet and interact with people from all over the world. And when I have the opportunity to spend some time talking with people who have a passion for leading teams and delivering projects, it's particularly fun!

One of my new friends in the last year is a brilliant project management thought leader from the UK: Dr. Mike Clayton. In this episode, Mike and I talk about subjects including:

Stakeholder management, including how to keep stakeholders engaged.

Influencing challenging stakeholders and team members.

How organizational politics impact how we lead projects.

How to manage risks on projects (and what aspect of risk management gets too little attention).

It's All About Relationships

As Mike and I talk in this episode, a lot of success leading projects comes down to building relationships. Learn how to more effectively build relationships by signing up for our Dirty Little Secret of Business e-learning course. Earn 1.5 PDUs while learning how to more effectively develop relationships.

Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!

What I Learned This Week

We continue our series of short videos talking about an idea or observation that was learned this week. This week I share lessons from a son moving out of the home and a book I'm reading for a future episode.

Let Me Hear From You!

What lessons have you learned about ending well? How have you seen self-deception hold a leader back? Please e-mail me (show [AT] PeopleAndProjectsPodcast [DOT] com) or leave a message on our Listener Feedback Line (847-550-3747). What have you been learning? I look forward to hearing from you!

Do Nice Guys Finish Last?

Common wisdom tells us that we will be successful if we work hard. Be nice. Show up. It all makes sense, right? The project manager who reliably shows up each day and delivers should be the one who gets promoted, right?

Just Take the Leap?

It can be uncomfortable to confront a team member or a peer. We can face demanding challenges, wondering if we have what it takes, hesitating to go "all in" because of the risk of failure. Delivering bad news is something leaders have to do, but rarely do we look forward to it. These are just a few of the challenges we face as leaders--each requiring us to reach beyond our comfort zone.

It's one thing to know that good things are on the other side of our comfort zone. But just telling someone to "take the leap" seems to be insufficient, right?

Practical Project Management Training

Take the next step in developing your ability to lead and deliver by going through our Advanced Project Management e-learning course. 20 PDUs for a great price! Check it out!

Comfort Zone Example

At the very end of the outtakes in this episode, I share the story of my son Barrett Kaufman going way beyond his comfort zone. He runs a company that does video production and was hired for an adventure shoot. Listen to the episode for the story, but here's the picture of him way atop of his comfort zone!

Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!